All Because of a Heat Wave
by natalie.palumbo
Summary: A One-shot about Lucy finally realizing why she feels attracted to Natsu, even though he is a flame-brain idiot...


"Luce~~~~~ this is boring! Let's go on a mission," whined Natsu as he watched Lucy write her book.

"Natsu if you interrupt me one more time I will kick you so hard a Doctor won't even be able to help you," I threatened, tightening the grip on my pen which was threatening to break.

-1 hour earlier-

"Mmmm… is it morning already?," I yawned as I awoke from sleep, ignoring the little voice in the back of my mind whispering that that it would have been better with Natsu. Natsu hadn't slept over last night which was unusual,,,, yesterday he had said he had something to do with a strange, mysterious gleam in his eyes and disappeared before I could question him. The stellar-mage didn't want to admit it but she felt a little lonely without Natsu.

I got dressed in the usual creamy white blouse with the blue heart paired with my blue arms sleeves and short black skirt, tying my whip on the belt. I shuffled to the kitchen and put together my favorite cereal, lucky charms, and sat down in front of the tv-lacrima. I flipped through the channels, lingering on the ones with juicy gossip on famous wizards for a bit longer, when the magnolia news channel caught my eyes.

Warning- due to the intense heat wave inside, we advise citizens to remain inside and drink lots of water

"Aww but I wanted to go to the guild…," I pouted as I turned the tv off. Suddenly a brilliant idea popped in my head, I could work on my novel! I looked through my drawers until I spotted my paper and pen, placing the paper on my desk and holding the pen, but no ideas were coming to mind. There were so many missions team Natsu had been on, Guana island, the town with freaky mushrooms, the play Erza starred in as the knight (just the thought made me shiver), and so many more, but I had a major case of writers block. After 5 minutes of tapping my pen against the table and useless scribbles, I finally got an idea. Just when I was going to start writing Natsu suddenly burst through the window.

"LUCY WHY WERENT YOU AT THE GUILD!? ARE YOU OK?" screeched Natsu as he ran up to my desk, spewing fire out of his mouth.

"NATSU I WAS ABOUT TO START WRITING CHAPTER 2 OF MY NOVEL! DO U KNOW HOW LONG IT TOOK TO THINK OF IT AND YOU JUST MADE ME FORGET!" I yelled as Natsu just stood there shocked.

I took a deep breath and explained more calmly "I'm fine Natsu, I didn't go to the guild because there's a heat wave outside"

Natsu suddenly smiled and I felt really guilty for yelling at him "Luce you're so weird " my eyebrow twitched, "there's not a heat wave outside".

"Well you're a fire breathing dragon slayer so of course you don't feel the heat… but for us normal people this weather in unbearable," I said.

Natsu then looked at me like I had grown 3 heads "Luce you are the farthest thing from normal".

"Says the guy who has a flying blue cat and eats fire," I groaned.

"What's wrong with happy," said Natsu.

I slapped my hand against my forehead, sighing, "nothing, never mind". Natsu plopped down beside me and I could feel the restlessness radiating off of him. I began writing again when I heard an annoying ticking. I looked down and saw Natsu repeatedly dragging his hand across the floor.

"Natsu…" I whispered dangerously, knowing he could hear me with his super human hearing "what are you doing?"

Natsu could hear the underlying threat in my voice so he responded a little shakily, "just admiring your floor." He then gulped when my eyes flashed.

"Well could you admire it somewhere else?" I said.

Natsu made a sort of humph sound and went to the couch area.

-Back to the present-

I decided that I wouldn't be able to get anything done with Natsu around so I went to the kitchen to make us some snacks. He started jumping around at the mention of food and I had to threaten him with my Lucy kick to get him to calm down.

"Is Peanut-butter and jam sandwiches good for you?" I asked while reaching to grab the plates in the cupboard.

"Ya! I'm getting all fired up! Thanks Luce," grinned Natsu.

My heart skipped a beat when he used the nickname Luce, like it usually did. Me and Natsu were best friends, and no one could ever replace how important he was to me, but sometimes I caught myself thinking if we could ever be more. I shook my head furiously at the thought though; earning a weird look from Natsu, he probably wouldn't know the meaning of romance if it hit him in the face.

"Lucy, could you add hot sauce to my sandwich?" begged Natsu.

"Ya sure," I began reaching for the hot sauce when the lights suddenly turned off.

"Natsu what did you do!?" I screeched.

"What me? I didn't do anything," said Natsu

Just then I remembered that all the houses in Magnolia had the AC on high… so if the power had turned off it meant that the pressure on the Magnolia magic center must have been too much.

"Just great," I moaned, blowing the hair out of my face.

"What? I don't get it," said Natsu.

"All the power just went out in all the houses in Magnolia because of how much magic we were using," I explained.

"Ohhhh,,,, so did you put the hot sauce on my food?" asked Natsu.

"Is food all you ever think about?" I said while pouring the hot sauce in his sandwich.

"No, I-" I didn't understand the rest of what he was saying because he said it in between huge bites. In a matter of seconds his whole sandwich was gone.

"Lucy can I have another one?" pleaded Natsu.

"You can have mine" I said while shoving my plate towards him. Was it just me or had it suddenly gone up a few degrees in the kitchen?

"Are you sure?" asked Natsu.

"Ya,,,,,, does it seem warmer to you?"

"So you can finally sense how hot a fire dragon slayer really is," grinned Natsu before he demolished his second sandwich.

I could feel my face turning a bright red after Natsu said that. He probably didn't understand what his words could mean, but sneaking a look at his mischievous face, he probably did. Natsu was actually quite good looking- but in a rugged way. He had tan skin that didn't have a single imperfection, onyx colored eyes that could flash from happiness to anger in a matter of seconds, defined cheekbones every girl wished they had, a beautiful smile that could make even the darkest situations seem ok, and he actually pulled off the pink hair pretty well. I mentally shook myself, what was it thinking? I sounded like a mega pervert!

The heat was rising to an uncomfortable level so I opened all the windows, but there was no breeze and it just made the house warmer. I quickly closed the windows and went back to the kitchen. Natsu was currently balancing a fork on his nose so I would have time to change into a bikini without the risk of Natsu barging in. I put on my white bikini with dusty pink flowers on it.

I walked back to the kitchen where Natsu was currently trying to balance two forks on his nose. I couldn't help but chuckle at the look of utter determination on his face, causing him to break his concentration and look up, but the look on his face didn't change as he saw me in a bikini. Natsu had seen me in a two piece countless times and he probably didn't notice the difference between a man and woman's body. I don't know why, but I felt disappointed when he didn't even react in the slightest at seeing me half naked.

"Why did you change?"

"Because it's over a trillion degrees in here," I snapped.

"Lucy not even Igneel's fire was a trillion degrees," replied Natsu.

"…. I give up" I said while throwing my hands in the air. Sweat was beginning to form on the back of my neck so I grabbed a piece of paper and started to fan myself. I went to my bed and threw all the covers off, lying on top. Natsu came over and lay next to me, I weakly tried to push him off but I was too lazy to move him.

The mugginess in the room was making me really uncomfortable so I kept turning, trying to find a comfortable position. I ended up facing Natsu and was surprised that his eyes were concentrated on mine. Natsu never concentrated on one thing for long but when he did you could feel the raw emotion and intensity in his eyes. Heat began to rise to my cheeks and my heart was thumping wildly in my chest as he just continued to stare at me. My throat suddenly went dry so I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep to avoid that heavy gaze.

"Lucy, what's wrong with your heart?"

I quickly opened my eyes "M-y hear-t?" I stuttered.

He placed his hand over my chest, causing my cheeks to redden further "I heard it suddenly start to beat really fast"

"You can hear my heartbeat?" I gasped. His hand was partly touching my breast and just the thought made my heart pound even faster. I could feel the heat radiating off his palm but it wasn't a type of heat I knew. The heat in the apartment was muggy and sticky,,, the heat from Natsu felt like it was so hot it could burn my soul, but soft enough to cradle me to sleep. The heat from Natsu made me feel safe,,, and whole. God what was wrong with me? I had slept with Natsu before, but there had always been blankets between us. I had never gotten this feeling from one simple touch with Natsu… well I had before but I hadn't thought too much of it. In Tenrou, before Acnologia sunk the island, I thought we were all going to die and felt so helpless and scared that I started to cry. Natsu had grabbed my hand and that one touch, along with his reassuring smile, made me think everything was going to be alright, and everything had been alright.

"I only can hear it because were so close," murmured Natsu as he began to close his eyes. His hand moved from my chest to my shoulder, bringing me into his chest. He began to breathe heavily, signaling he was asleep. After many unsuccessful attempts of trying to wriggle away, I decided to get comfortable. With a faint blush on my cheeks I snuggled a little closer, letting his heat engulf me. I peered up at his face and noticed how peaceful he looked when he was sleeping. His lips were slightly parted and I suddenly felt the urge to feel them, to discover if there were soft or rough. My fingertips lightly grazed his lips and I was surprised at how soft they were, and hot. The image of me kissing Natsu, my tender lips being consumed by him, suddenly popped into my mind. In a rush all my feelings for Nastu and why I seemed to be so attracted to him suddenly became crystal clear.

I was in love with Natsu.

He's the one who makes me laugh when all I want to do was cry and when I'm suffering he stays by my side.

He's the one I can trust my life with and not think twice about it.

He's the one who accepts me even with all my flaws.

He's the one who see's strength in me that sometimes even I can't see.

He's the reason I push myself to become stronger.

He's the reason I never lose hope.

The thought of being in love with Natsu made me breathless and made the situation with him seem more awkward…... Wait what am I thinking!? I'm not going to ruin my relationship with Natsu and make it awkward (like the time Mira told me she thought Natsu liked me) just because I've finally realized my feelings. I think deep down I had always known, but kept my feelings hidden because I was afraid if I told him, he would think it was a joke. Me being in love with him explained a lot though, like why I felt like I was the one being hurt with every blow Natsu received in battle. It wasn't the same feeling I felt with the rest of my nakama, when my nakama got hurt in battle, I felt burning anger at the person who had done it and sadness of the pain they must be going through. Even though I knew Natsu could defeat any opponent, when he gets hurt there's a painful throbbing in my chest and I feel like those physical blows are striking me as well. I don't just feel angry at those who hurt Natsu, I felt blinding white- hot rage.

I continued to let my eyes roam over Natsu's face, thinking if I should confess how I feel or not. The worst thing that could happen if I confessed was that he laughed thinking it was joking, or asked what love is. The best thing that could happen would be he admits he feels the same way. I weighed these options in my head.

A factor I hadn't considered suddenly popped in my head, a thought that made my stomach churn uncomfortably. What if we got together but decided things weren't working and broke up? I don't know what I would do if we couldn't go back to our easy friendship…. I love the relationship I have with Natsu and I wouldn't ruin it for anything.

I sighed and closed my eyes… it was times like this that made me wish mamma was still here. She always knew what advice to give and how to make me feel better. Now that I think about it, the person who usually gives me advice and cheers me up is Natsu,, but I couldn't ask him about this… or could i?

As if knowing he was being thought of Natsu began to moan and shifted in his sleep, bringing me so close my head was on his chest.

_Thump_

_Thump_

_Thump_

I could hear his heartbeat.

That steady thumping made a sudden rush of calm come over me, spreading throughout my whole body. I don't know why his heartbeat was so calming to me, but I unconsciously began to close my eyes and place my hand over his heart. I spread my fingers apart, feeling the hard expanse of muscles. His heartbeat was like a lullaby and I could feel myself starting to fall asleep.

I woke up feeling disoriented. I could feel something really warm wrapped around me and upon opening my eyes I was met with the sight of Natsu's tanned chest (I'd be lying if I said I wasn't enjoying the view). I realized that Natsu's arms were wrapped protectively around me and it made me feel safe. Before I had sorted out my feelings for Natsu, I would have freaked out and pushed him out of my bed, but now I felt safe and warm(in a good way) in his arms.

Natsu began to flutter his eyelids so I quickly shut my eyes and pretended to be asleep. His hold on me tightened and then loosened again. I could feel his gaze on me and decided that it was time to "wake up". I pretended to slowly awaken and looked at Natsu. We both started into each other's eyes, both thinking about what to say.

I was the first to speak, "soooo-" but was interrupted when Natsu suddenly flipped us, so he was on top of me.

"Nat-su," I whispered as my cheeks began to heat up. His arms were on either sides of my head and his face was only 2 inches apart from mine, at most.

His gaze slowly roamed my face, starting on my eyes, moving to the delicate curve of my nose and finally to my slightly parted lips. His gaze lingered on my lips before travelling back to my eyes.

I felt like I couldn't breathe. I had never seen this look in Natsu's eyes before. Natsu's eyes held such intensity that I thought that I would burn from looking at them, but the strangest part was that I liked it. I liked the way his eyes roamed over me, like a piece of meat ready to be devoured.

"Luce" he whispered, in a voice that caused me to shiver, "you're so weird".

That snapped me out of the daze I was in. "I'm wha-t", I stuttered. I tried to shove him off, but he leaned in closer, causing our noses to bump. I could feel my face burning from embarrassment.

"I know you're strong and don't need me to protect you, and I don't know why, but I have this feeling of needing to protect you and to never let you out of my sight." I was about to comment when he continued.

"I've never felt this way around anyone. When I'm with you I feel like I'm on fire,,, but not like normal fire, with you I feel like every nerve in my body is burning. When I'm in a battle and it seems like there's no hope for victory, you're the one that gives me the hope to keep on fighting. When you smile I get this weird feeling in my stomach, and I promise myself to do anything to keep you smiling. I've never laughed so hard with someone in my entire life. When you're not with me I feel like half myself is gone" He took a deep breath, "and it scares me that I have someone in my life that I care about as much as Igneel,,,, Luce…."my heart beat quickened ,

"You're my mate"

My brain couldn't process what Natsu was saying. I was his hope? He cared about me as much as Igneel? Did Natsu just confess his love to me?The thought that I was that important to Natsu brought tears in my eyes that soon began to run down my face. I was so happy that Natsu loved me as much as I loved him. Mistaking my tears for tears of sadness Natsu began to move away from me but I quickly sat up, causing me to straddle him.

"I love you, baka" I said, putting my hands on either side of his face.

Natsu's gaze snapped back to me, a grin stretching from ear to ear on his face.

"But Natsu, what's a mate?" I asked.

Natsu wrapped his arms around my back, bringing us closer.

"Igneel told me that dragons and dragon-slayers only have one person they can truly love, this person is their other half and makes them feel complete. And when they find this person,,, they never let them go."

And with that Natsu closed the remaining space between us and pressed his lip to mine. Kissing him was like my whole body was being consumed by flames, and Natsu wasn't gentle. He roughly pried my mouth open, slipping his tongue into mine. Our tongues fought for dominance, but I was no match for him. He easily dominated and he seemed determined to memorize every crevice of my mouth. I moaned into his mouth as he licked the roof of my mouth. All too soon I tore myself from him, gasping for air.

"You taste good Luce….. as good as fire" whispered Natsu. Those words made me shiver as he pulled me in for another kiss.

In the end, I thought in bliss, I didn't end up with my prince charming,,,,, but I got something better,

The dragon that would do anything for his mate.


End file.
